Ch.547Chapter 21. Blood Pack (7)

Choi Woo-sik’s testicles were skewered.

A long acupuncture needle penetrated his cradle, leaving his body in poor condition at the hands of a traditional doctor from the countryside.

No new life would ever come from Choi Woo-sik again.

If there were to be any, it would only be possible if he had frozen his sperm before being impaled by the needle this time.

‘And that’s only if there’s a woman who genuinely and rationally falls for Choi Woo-sik.’

Choi Woo-sik (Haeguneul) is dead, and Choi Woo-sik (modified human) is born.

He’s become a seedless watermelon, but perhaps another miracle might occur if a woman falls for the modified Choi Woo-sik who lives with desires other than sexual ones.

“What are you going to do with that man? Erase his identity and make him a functioning member of society? Or turn him into someone completely different?”

“Even if he can’t pass on his genes, it would be a waste to throw away his skills as a plastic surgeon. I’ll have him perform plastic surgeries.”

It’s not Choi Woo-sik getting plastic surgery.

“A new face for those who need to live with a changed appearance. Plastic surgery isn’t just for cosmetic purposes.”

From a villain’s perspective, it could be used for identity laundering.

From a hero’s perspective, it could treat people with severe burns or skin injuries.

Though the cosmetic side rakes in enormous amounts of money, Choi Woo-sik’s medical skills could be put to good use in various ways.

BWAAAAAAAH!!

An unidentifiable sound echoes from the modification room.

It’s the sound of the tavern owners modifying the mind of the man called Choi Woo-sik. Now, inside that room, there is no longer a capitalist slave living for Haeguneul Group.

In the future, there will be a public medical center active in fields beyond just cosmetics.

And in the present, there’s only bait to capture the “money bags” entangled with Haeguneul Plastic Surgery.

“Qiongqi. The item.”

“It’s here for now, but take good care of it. Even if it’s coated with two people’s mana, there’s no guarantee it’ll stay quietly contained in the mana gold.”

Yoon Hye-ra handed me a bead.

Inside was a golden clip piece with a snake-like coiled pattern, sealed in the bead.

It’s the seal embedded in the directors of Haeguneul Group, something resembling a hairworm sealed in mana gold.

“If you mess with it carelessly, all the plastic surgery-enhanced pretty boys and girls in Korea will have their middle school graduation photos exposed. Be careful.”

“That guy would be perfect for containing something like this.”

“That guy?”

“Yes. I’ve been building rapport with him for this very purpose. He’ll be here soon. Let’s go meet him.”

I headed to the parking lot with Yoon Hye-ra and Hyun Se-rin.

A black van prepared by the Syndicate’s members was waiting for us in the parking lot.

“Let’s go.”

“Oppa. You’re not planning to drive in that outfit, are you?”

Yoon Hye-ra grabbed my arm, tugging at the traditional scholar’s robe I was wearing.

“Don’t you know you need to dress for the occasion? Haven’t you watched movies?”

“……”

“Like this. See?”

Swish.

The mana covering Yoon Hye-ra’s body changed instantly.

Like Hyun Se-rin, she was now dressed in a black shirt, black pants, a black hat, and a coat—an outfit that screamed “I’m a con artist” to anyone who saw it.

“This is how you’re supposed to dress for these things. Unni always dresses like this anyway.”

“…I’ll admit the hat works.”

Hyun Se-rin also used mana to create a black hat and pressed it firmly onto her head.

“You know it’s not proper etiquette to dress like grim reapers in crime movies, right?”

Both had long hair reaching their waists—one with red and gold, the other with white and gold—but neither seemed to care as they approached the passenger seat.

“Etiquette indeed.”

I opened the back door for the two waiting by the passenger seat and pushed them inside.

“The person sitting next to the driver isn’t going to be either of you, so get in the back.”

“…There are no seats here. This is the cargo area.”

“Putting women in the trunk? What kind of etiquette is this?”

“It’s etiquette often seen in crime movies. And this isn’t a trunk.”

I had simply removed all the seats behind the second row.

To fit as many blood containers as possible.

“This might look like a van, but it’s basically a truck! How could you think of putting beautiful women like us in a truck’s cargo area instead of the passenger seat?”

“It’s not like a truck with separate compartments. The front and back are connected, so it’s fine, isn’t it?”

“Then what about the passenger seat? Who’s supposed to sit in that empty spot? Hmm, are you trying to make us fight over it?”

Yoon Hye-ra and Hyun Se-rin looked at each other and grinned.

“No. It’s neither of you.”

They both turned their heads sharply toward me.

“Another woman?”

“Who is it this time? Perhaps your sisters?”

“Not an American. And…”

I went to the driver’s seat, sat down, and pointed to the makeshift chairs behind me.

“Not a woman.”

“What…”

They looked at the food stall-like chairs right behind the driver’s and passenger’s seats with disbelieving eyes.

“My goodness, Manager Do is putting a man in the passenger seat?”

“Who is it?”

“You’ll see when you meet him. But I won’t tell you who. And…”

I gently grabbed the van’s stick shift and pulled it, driving out of the parking lot.

“I can’t abandon my scholar identity.”

“Wait, you’re going to walk around wearing that? What if we run into people?”

“If we meet them, we just meet them. Ah, want some coffee? We should wet our throats on the way.”

“You’re going to buy coffee dressed like that?”

“No.”

I reached toward the front mirror and pulled out a card.

“Drive-thru.”

“…A Hi-Pass card?”

“Haeguneul is really good at these things.”

I checked the card’s status and placed the Taeguk Watch I’d obtained from the driver in front of me.

“They’ve made payment the most convenient thing in the world.”

* * *

Haeguneul Cafe 24.

Though criticized for selling small cups of tasteless cheap coffee for 5,000 won, for Jung Ki-woo, the branch manager and aspiring barista, this place is both his workplace and the stage of his dreams.

Although he was assigned to the Seoul branch—more specifically, the remote Uijeongbu branch—unlike the first-class baristas hired in Busan, Ki-woo still has a dream.

After paying rent, he has less than 500,000 won left each month, but he’s saving that money as capital to open his own cafe somewhere, be it Seoul or Busan.

If he were to just open a private cafe without preparation, this very place where he works, Haeguneul Cafe, would immediately try to devour him.

Unless he has sufficient skill, connections, and enough key money to secure a location that won’t be swallowed by Haeguneul, simply leaving this place would be suicidal.

“Manager, we have a drive-thru order.”

“Okay, the order… huh?”

The moment Jung Ki-woo saw the order slip after hearing the part-timer’s words, he felt a chill down his spine as he watched the black van that had just finished ordering and was now parking.

“Uh, uhh…?”

That van.

He definitely had seen it somewhere before.

“What’s wrong?”

“Ah, nothing. What did they order?”

“Two iced Americanos and one cappuccino, and…”

“And?”

“I think it would be faster if you just look at it yourself.”

Jung Ki-woo glanced at the order slip handed to him by the part-timer and tilted his head.

“An Americano without the espresso shot?”

“Yes. I asked about that too. They… they just wanted water in a coffee cup.”

“…Can we sell water at the price of coffee?”

5,000 won?

Wouldn’t it be better to just go to a convenience store and buy bottled water?

Why would someone pay 5,000 won for water?

And not even regular bottled water, but water from a purifier, as per Haeguneul headquarters’ guidelines?

“…Even for Haeguneul, isn’t this going too far?”

“Maybe they’re filming something for HaeTube? Like ‘What happens when you order an Americano without the shot at Haeguneul Cafe!’ Something like that.”

“If they’re filming a video or something… hmm, I don’t know.”

Jung Ki-woo reminded himself of his position.

“When an order comes in, I just need to do my job and earn my salary.”

With skilled hands, he prepared the drinks according to the order slip and delivered the coffee himself.

Clunk.

The window opened with a somewhat dull sound.

“Thank you.”

“…!”

Jung Ki-woo felt a sudden chill down his spine as he saw the young man with sunken eyes receiving the coffee.

“Ah, h-have a nice day.”

Vroom.

The van left the exit with a dull sound.

“Wow. He looks a lot like Do Ji-hwan. Manager, you were going to get Do Ji-hwan surgery too, right?”

“A-ahem.”

“The plastic surgery turned out really well. Look at this. The membership name is Kim Chun-sik, but with that face.”

“Kim… Chun-sik?”

Not a common name, but a familiar one.

“……”

A familiar black van.

A familiar name.

An enormous pile of coupons.

“Pull up the order history. What does this person usually order?”

“…Just one coffee consistently?”

“……”

But a man with a different appearance suddenly ordering several types of coffee?

“……”

Jung Ki-woo, feeling an inexplicable anxiety, fiddled with his Taeguk Watch just in case.

“No way. It can’t be.”

Right.

Since the payment went through without any issues, there must be no problem.

That’s what he thought as he waited for the next customer for 30 minutes.

“Excuse me. We need your cooperation.”

“Uh… Team Leader?”

The moment a man in a black suit from headquarters entered with police officers, Jung Ki-woo realized his instinct had been correct.

By then, the van had been gone for over 30 minutes.

* * *

Northern Gyeonggi Province, Uijeongbu City.

After leaving Seoul and heading toward our destination in northern Gyeonggi, we stopped briefly at a public parking lot to wet our throats.

“…Even for a villain, is this really okay?”

“Yep.”

I flicked the card inserted in the Hi-Pass terminal and the driver’s Taeguk Watch with my finger.

“When else would I get to use someone else’s credit card?”

“…You say it so matter-of-factly, but you know that’s a serious crime, right?”

“Of course.”

Using someone else’s credit card without permission is a criminal act, and it wouldn’t be strange if the police showed up immediately.

“I used it deliberately, so it’s fine.”

I didn’t even change the van’s license plate.

Someone is using the kidnapped organization member’s card.

“I’ve thrown the bait, and now we just wait for something to bite. Speaking of which, here they come right on cue.”

Screech.

“A black car arriving before the police. Isn’t that a cliché often seen in crime movies?”

“HEY!”

A booming voice rang out.

“Not only did you kidnap Chun-sik, but you’re also using his card?!”

The voice carried threatening magical power.

“You went all the way to Uijeongbu, hitting every drive-thru along the way!!”

I threw the driver Kim Chun-sik’s card and Taeguk Watch toward the young man who was getting out of his car, shouting.

“Don’t worry. I made sure to collect the loyalty points at every place we went.”

I kept my manners.